October 14, 2010

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A gay organization is accusing the Defense Department of ignoring a federal judge's order issued Tuesday barring enforcement of the "don't ask, don't tell" policy for gay service members.

The Log Cabin Republicans, which brought the lawsuit that led to Judge Virginia Phillips's injunction against "don't ask," says a New York Times report that a sailor discharged under "don't ask" was turned away from a Navy recruiting station in Texas on Wednesday raises questions about whether the Pentagon is complying with the court order.

"According to the Times article, 'recruiters turned [the ex-sailor] away hastily, saying they had no knowledge of any injunction,'" Log Cabin lawyer Dan Woods wrote in a letter Thursday to the Justice Department. "If The New York Times report is accurate, the Defense Department would appear to be in violation of the court's injunction and subject to citation for contempt."

"The government has taken steps to comply with the judge's order," Justice Department spokeswoman Tracy Schmaler said Thursday afternoon.

Defense Department officials have rebuffed press questions for two days about how or whether they intend to comply with the order. However, White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said Thursday that the Pentagon is working on instructions to its personnel about how to comply with the judge's order.

"The Department of Defense is working on guidance for the entire chain of command that should be ready and out soon," Gibbs said. He also said President Barack Obama has been "very involved" in discussions about the policy as the administration decides whether to appeal Phillips's ruling.

In his letter, Woods noted that when a judge enjoined the military's ban on gays in 1993, the Pentagon acted within 24 hours to advise its personnel of the ruling, which was quickly reversed.

"The means of communication have only improved since 1993, and we have little doubt that your clients could have issued a similar directive by yesterday," Woods wrote.

UPDATE: This post has been updated with Gibbs's comments.

UPDATE 2: This post has been updated with comments from the Justice Department.